Chapter 8
My world was spinning.And bouncing. There was a whole lot of bouncing. Never mind that the ceiling was moving past a little too fast, but I was supposed to be showing that guy. Austin was his name. Asshole from Oklahoma who said he'd show me what a good eight seconds looked like. Well, I was gonna show him... um... something.
That was when Ty had shown up. I remembered stumbling. Then I wasn't. Wait. Now I was being carried!
I slapped at his arm, wishing he'd stop ignoring me. "Ty, put me down."
"Not till we're outside, baby. Pretty sure you can't make it on your own."
Not what I wanted. I hit him a bit harder, but I didn't want to really hurt him. He was too cute to break. "No, I'm gonna kick his ass. I can't do that if you're carrying me like, um, a damsel."
He just chuckled, but the ceiling had changed. Now it looked like the arena, with little bright lights and darkness beyond. No. That was the sky, not a ceiling, but I was pretty sure it shouldn't be turning like that.
"Ty!" I groaned. "Stop."
"We're stopped." He even lowered me to the ground, but it wasn't helping.
I just waved my hand, hoping he'd look at me. He might be, but my eyes weren't working that good right now. "No. Stop turning."
Behind me, someone else chuckled. I tried to face him, but my left ankle got caught on my right one. Suddenly, the spinning got a whole lot faster, and the sky tilted sideways. Then I hit something really hard and solid, but it smelled so good.
"Easy there, baby," Ty whispered in my ear, making my skin shiver in a very nice way. "I think your feet are trying to get away from you."
"No," I insisted, thrusting a limp arm at the laughter beside us. "I wanna know who thinks I'm so funny."
A warm hand caught my fingers, and I saw something moving. A few blinks made the guy bowing over my hand like something from a fairy tale come into focus. I couldn't help it. I giggled.
"Renato Vieria," he told me. "Definitely a pleasure to meet you, miss."
"Ohh," I breathed, recognizing the name. "You've won two world championships, and almost did it again last year, but drew a bad bull." Straining to make his face come into focus, I leaned toward him, pleased that the support around my waist moved with me. "How do you stay so balanced when you spur? I always go - " And I tried to show him, but leaning to the side made the whole world go completely crazy.
Renato just laughed. "I'll explain it to you tomorrow. Tonight, I think you need to go to bed."
"No." I tried to blow that off, but the sound that came out of my lips was a lot more like a motorboat, and that really wasn't what I'd been going for. "I had dinner first. I can have at least one more."
"Cody." Those words came from behind me, and the breath of air on the back of my neck made me want to close my eyes and relax into it.
I tried, but the only thing flopping was my head, right onto a very muscular shoulder. "Mm. You smell so good."
"Cody," Ty tried again. "Baby, I think you've passed drunk and reached pissed. You gonna let me take you home?"
I had to think about that. He sounded so nice, but I wasn't sure that was a good idea. I couldn't really remember why, but I knew I'd already decided that. Huffing in frustration at the fuzz in my head, I twisted, turning around so I could actually see him. Ty released his grip enough to let me, then pulled me right back against his chest. Unsure if I was going to stay completely vertical, I grabbed hold of the only thing I could: his neck.
Wait. Had I just done that? I had my arms wrapped around Ty McBride? I'd already decided that this would be a bad idea, and yet here I was, unable to stop myself. Just wait until the rest of the guys heard about this - which they would by morning. When the thought made its way through the alcohol, my knees went weak, and I tried to pull back, but his arms were like steel cables.
"No, you aren't supposed to see me drunk," I told him. "I'm supposed to be impressive, and tough, and..." I felt my lip quivering, so I bit it to make it stop. "Now you're all just going to laugh at me."
"Not laughing," he promised. "Neither is Renato. Besides, we've all been there, and the rest of us take care of each other." His hand caught my jaw, tilting my face up. "Baby, why were you talking to J.D.?"
"I wasn't."
His thumb swept across my cheek. "Ok, why was he sitting at your table?"
"I dunno. That bitch cock - " I paused, sure I'd gotten that wrong. "Cock bitch?" No, that wasn't it either. "Whatever J.D. called him. He was trying to convince me I should go home. Said my face was too pretty to get my teeth knocked out, but if I did, I should suck his dick. And then he wouldn't leave, so I was gonna, but J.D. sat down."
"J.D.?" Renato asked. "And what did he say?"
"Said no one screwed with his rookie during an event. I dunno, but Austin wouldn't leave, then he said my boobs would get in the way and grabbed them, so I threw my margarita in his face, and now I don't have one anymore."
Ty made a noise that sounded like an angry dog. "I'm gonna kick his - "
Renato just patted his shoulder. "Just take her home, Ty. Leave Austin out of this. If he's still in one piece tomorrow, I'll be shocked. Sorry you're not gonna get lucky, but if you don't need me anymore, I'm gonna head out."
"No. Sorry. Get outta here and kiss Hannah."
"Always." Ty got another pat. What shocked me was that Renato rubbed my shoulder too before walking around us to a truck on the other side.
I had to blink my eyes real hard to make sure I wasn't seeing things, because we were still in the parking lot of the bar. It seemed like he'd carried me a lot farther than that, but I wasn't upset. Now that I knew where I was, I could make it back to my truck. First, I had to convince Ty to let go of me. I tried to wiggle, hoping he'd get the hint, but he just chuckled.
"You're a cute drunk, you know that?"
I groaned. "No, I'm not. Ty, I stink. I don't want you to smell me like this."
He just leaned closer. "Saying you'll let me close enough to smell you after you've had a shower?"
Oh, the images that flashed through my mind. I couldn't help but giggle. Shelby would be so proud of me if I did that. But wait. Shelby. That was what I was supposed to do. Shoving my arm under his, I reached for my back pocket, trying to get my phone.
"I gotta get a picture of you."
He leaned back, but still wouldn't let go, preventing my feeble attempt. "What are you talking about, Cody?"
"I told my best friend I talked to you, and she wanted one. I mean, she wanted me to get you naked first, but - " I clamped my mouth closed. "That was out loud, wasn't it?"
"Yeah," he agreed. "It was. Baby, where the hell are you staying tonight? Because there's no way I'm letting you make it back there on your own."
"My truck's just over there." But that wasn't the first time he'd done that. "Ty? When did I go from honey to baby?"
"Right about the time I wrapped my arms around you, and I'm not letting you drive. Now help me out here. Where am I taking you?"
Using my whole arm, I pointed back to the amber glow of the convention center parking lot. "Across the street. Pretty sure I can't focus well enough to find it on my own. Big white 1994 Ford crew cab. Long bed with Missouri plates."
He took a deep breath, carefully reaching up to push a few wayward strands of hair out of my eyes. "And then?"
"I got a pillow in the back seat. I like that better than the front because I like to curl up anyway. Crap. But I just drank a whole lot. I'll have to pee, so can we - "
He was shaking his head. "No. Oh, hell no. You are not sleeping in the back of your truck, drunk, in the middle of the parking lot."
The sound that came out of my mouth was one I'd become a pro at a decade ago. Evidently, the body never forgot those impulsive teenage huffs. "Look, I don't need you or anyone else telling me what I can and can't do because I'm some girl, ok? I just need to make sure I'm there so I can ride tomorrow, and then no one will be able to tell me I'm not good enough anymore. I just have to make sure that I'm at the arena by one, and - "
He didn't bother letting me finish my rant. Guiding me forward, he aimed me right at the side of a big red dually. "And I know a real good place where you can get a shower, a ride to the arena well before check-in, and a real bed all for free. Sound like a plan?"
"Really?"
He just pulled open the door. "Yeah, baby. Hop up in there. Not even as much work as getting on a bull. You got this."
"Yeah." It was a long way up, but I could do this.
Grabbing the handle, I heaved myself in, shocked at how nice the seat was. I was pretty sure the padding was almost worn out in mine - well, Dad's - but that seat wasn't the best part. Letting my eyes close, I took a long, deep breath. I didn't even need to ask. I could smell Ty all over this truck. It had the same spicy scent that he did, and a bit more. Leather, alfalfa, and Ty, it was the best incense I could imagine. The problem was that I forgot to open my eyes.
It felt like a split second later when the light came on and a breeze wafted through the door. I jerked straight up, trying to figure out what happened, but a hand just pushed me back in the seat.
"I need your keys, Cody."
"Where am I?"
He chuckled, but it sounded amused, not mean. "Sitting in my truck. Figured we'd pick up your things. What do you need for the night?"
"Uh. My gear's in the back seat. Under that's my purse. I got a small bag with my clothes, but my shirt smells real bad. And my boots. Oh, I should clean those!"
"Right," he groaned. "So everything. I can do that."
The back door opened and he started throwing bags in. The sound was repetitive, and it was so hard to see what was going on. Everything kept sliding to the right. I wished someone would stop the merry-go-round already, but I knew that was my fault. I really shouldn't've had quite that many margaritas, but it was so much easier to deal with the jokes when I'd had a couple. Helped me sound sassy instead of sissy.
I jerked back awake when my ears popped. That was from the doors closing. A second later, I heard the key turn, but the truck didn't turn over. So it was a diesel. I nodded, thinking that was so fitting. Ty seemed like the diesel type of guy. My eyes started to slip back closed, but I had to know one thing.
"Where's this cool place that I didn't know about?"
He just reached over and rubbed my arm. "It's a Marriott. Has a very nice hot shower, as much water as you can suck back, and I'll even throw in a couple of aspirin to help with the hangover you're going to have in the morning. Sound like a plan?"
"Mhm. What's the catch?"
"No catch. Just takin' care of my girl. Go back to sleep, sweetie. I'll handle the rest, ok?"
"Mhmm."